


Squall

by strawberiglitch (noahliza)



Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Merfolk, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, M/M, Mutual Pining, Repressed Memories, Unethical Experimentation, its in the past so its not in the actual fic, mermaid au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-26
Updated: 2020-10-08
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:02:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26658640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noahliza/pseuds/strawberiglitch
Summary: Riku meets and befriends a merman named Sora after a chance meeting, and saves him from merfolk that are after him. As they spend time together they begin to fall for each other - and learn each others' pasts.「After the rain starts to settle down, the world is met with a grand rainbow」
Relationships: Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 28





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> hello!! i've had this au brewing in the back of my head for quite some time, i hope you like it!!  
> [title based from this song](https://youtu.be/-kB2K_4odA0)

Sora swam as quickly as he could, frantic. He didn’t dare look behind him, just swam  _ forward _ to where he hoped the shore would be. It would be no use hiding in the darker, deep waters — their eyes were accustomed to such darkness. They would find him much before he could sense them nearby. They’d already managed to get close once, his necklace’s charm reflecting light from above the surface. Sora carefully took it off, clutching it tightly in his hand; pressing little indents into his skin.

He was so focused on getting away, he didn’t notice the surface above him become choppy. He didn’t notice the current becoming stronger, pushing and pulling at everything it touched. As he reached shallower water, it only got worse. Smaller fish below him were dragged by the current — and then, so was he. 

Fear chilled his veins like ice, freezing his thoughts and halting his movement.

Sora squeezed his eyes shut, working up every last ounce of courage, and tried again to struggle against the current. The water dragged him around, and all he could manage was to go a bit deeper — luckily finding a large rock that provided a little bit of shelter from the current. He coiled himself as tightly as he could, trying to hide as much as he could while the water raged around him.

Despite the slight bit of protection from the rock, the current still tugged at Sora; as if it were trying to yank him into the depths.

He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to wedge himself between the rock and the sandy sea floor, blindly using his hands to guide him. Further…further… Something caught, startling him and yanking the necklace chain out of his hand.

“Ah!” Sora fumbled for it in a panic, accidentally pushing it further from himself; into the open sea floor. “Come back!” Sora rushed forward, grabbing it before the current could drag it away. It pushed him violently towards the deep before dragging him back — sending him tumbling fins-over-head towards the shallows. His hand breached the surface, and the rushing tide forced his fist open.

Sora watched as his necklace was dragged onto land by the tide. He scrambled for it, swimming forward until it was too shallow to continue onward. 

He pushed himself above water and stiffened, frozen again as he took in the storm. Rain pounded down as the wind whipped around, causing the violent tide and waves. Dark water pushed and pulled at him, smacking against him and trying to drag him back under.

-

Sora came to in the shallows, arms dug into the sand like anchors. He blinked in confusion and pulled them out, looking around to see if he recognized his surroundings.

…Not really.

_ Guess I was too freaked out to really pay attention to anything… _ Sora groaned quietly. 

At least things were quiet now, he could try to figure out what to do next. Absentmindedly, Sora reached up to fidget with his necklace while he thought.

_ It’s gone..! _ Suddenly, Sora remembered it being swept away in the storm. His heart sank.  _ It could be  _ **_anywhere…_ **

But, Sora refused to give up so quickly. He surfaced and looked around a bit, realizing he was uncomfortably close to a human dwelling. It was still dark out, though, so Sora figured he would be fine searching the shoreline for a bit.

* * *

Riku hadn’t expected his parents to buy a beachfront home  _ ‘for when we retire!’ _ , he hadn’t expected them to pay him to house-sit it during his summer vacation (though he had expected them to shove him off to somewhere), and he  _ definitely _ hadn’t expected to wake up and find a beached mermaid in the yard.

He was still groggy, it was stupidly early and hadn’t had his morning coffee yet. From a distance, he thought he was seeing things. As he got closer, he wondered if it was one of those expensive costume tails he’d seen on Instagram a couple times.

As he got closer still, and saw how the scales shone in the light, he couldn’t help but wonder who made such a  _ realistic _ tail. But then, the mermaid — merperson? merman? — moved, the tail moved like, well, a tail.

Riku must have made some kind of noise, because the merman looked up at him. With the most impossibly blue eyes Riku had ever seen. He felt like he was frozen where he stood.

The moment dragged along, and the merman started to look confused.

“I’ve never met a human before, but this really isn’t how I’d expect meeting one to go.” 

“Oh- uh, sorry, I just-” Riku stammered. “I’ve never met a merman before, and I have no idea what to do.”

The merman cracked a smile, and Riku felt his heart flutter. He briefly wondered if he should check if he’s dreaming.

“So uh,” The merman hesitated, smiling nervously now. “This is kind of a weird request, but can you help me get back into the ocean?”

“How’d you get this far onto the shore, anyway?” Riku asked.

“If you take me to the water, I promise I’ll tell you?” 

“Deal.” Riku nodded. He scooped up the very sandy merman, lamenting the cleanliness of the clothes he’d  _ just _ put on, and headed toward the shore.

“So, what’s your name?” The merman asked.

“I thought _ I  _ got to ask the questions.” Riku joked. The merman pouted, puffing his cheeks out in the most ridiculously cute way. “My name’s Riku.”

“I’m Sora!” The merman responded, much happier with his question answered. 

“Nice to meet you, Sora.” Riku set Sora down at the water’s edge. “You come here often?”

Embarrassment flared through Riku as he realized what he said.

“That’s- Uh, I mean. Ah-hah, you- Um-” He tripped and stumbled over his words, until he finally was able to cut himself off and shut his stupid mouth.

Sora laughed and smiled up at Riku, who was  _ sure _ he was blushing by this point.

“I meant, uh, why were you on land?” 

“Oh, well, I was looking for something…” Sora’s smile turned sheepish. “It got away from me in the current, but I’m sure it washed onto shore around here.”

“Must have been important, for you to get yourself stuck like that.” Riku huffed out a laugh.

“Yeah, actually…” Sora looked downcast. “I’ve had it longer than I can remember. So, it’s really precious to me…”

“Would you want help finding it?” Riku blurted out. “I mean, I…don’t have anything else to do, right now… I could look around for a bit.”

Sora’s eyes lit up, nearly sparkling in the sun. “Would you really?! Thank you _ so much, _ Riku!” 

“No problem…” Riku smiled nervously, basking in Sora’s excitement. “So, what am I looking for?”

“A necklace. It’s a silver crown on a thick chain.”

Riku nodded and set off. He quickly realized what an impossible task this was, trying to find something that was very likely buried in the sand — if it  _ was _ really in the area. 

“Hey, Sora!” Riku called out. “I’m gonna go see if I can find a metal detector!”

“A what?” Sora tilted his head in confusion, eyebrow raised.

“It’ll help me find your necklace more easily. I’ll be back soon, okay?”

“Okay!” Sora chirped. “I’ll wait!” 

Riku hurried back into the yard, first searching the poolhouse, then the actual house. Hoping, but not expecting, to find a metal detector. No luck, of course. Riku sighed to himself, wondering what to try next.  _ I can’t just give up right away, it feels wrong to do that… _

Lamenting the situation he’d put himself in, Riku tried in vain to think of another option. It was difficult when you didn’t know your neighbors — or if they were even home this time of year.

The doorbell rang, startling Riku out of his thoughts. Confused, he hurried through the house to the front door, peeking to see who was outside before opening.

_ Oh, it’s the guys that put up the stormproofing stuff. _ Riku opened the door for them. They’d kept it up while no one was staying, and came yesterday to take it down; but decided against it. Riku had no idea what they’d been talking about at the time, canceling on him  _ while they were there,  _ but once the storm hit overnight he’d been glad. It was a new, sturdy home; but Riku wasn’t sure how fond he’d be of staying somewhere with so many large windows during a storm.

He wasn’t fond of storms at all, so it probably wouldn’t have been a good end to his first week.

“Hey, you guys back to take down the stormproofing?” Riku asked the two men, struggling to remember their names. He vaguely remembered them being weather-related, or something, but he hadn’t really paid them any mind. They were just here to do their job.

“Yup, for real this time.” The blond one nodded. 

“Sweet, thanks.” Riku nodded. It dawned on him that maybe  _ they  _ would have what he needed. “Um, do you guys happen to have a metal detector with you?”

“What do you need it for?” The brunet asked. 

“I lost something on the beach, it’s going to be impossible to find without one.”

“Hmm. I think we might have one in the back of our truck.”

“I’ll go look.” The blond offered.

“Thanks, Cloud.” The brunet nodded.

Cloud strode to the truck and opened the back up, climbing in easily. He emerged a moment later, metal detector in hand.

“Looks like its your lucky day, kid.” The brunet said

Cloud handed the metal detector over and they all set to work. Riku started scanning the beach, hoping that Sora wouldn’t be seen easily from the house. He wasn’t sure how he’d explain Sora to them. He wasn’t even sure how he’d explain Sora to  _ himself. _

After a few non-necklace finds — mostly trash and one nice-looking ring — Riku finally found it. It seemed vaguely familiar, but he didn’t think anything of it. Maybe he’d seen it in a store once, or something. He hurried back towards his house, and was confused to find Sora on dry sand again.

“Sora? What’re you doing..?”

“Oh, hey!” Sora grinned up at Riku. “I got bored.”

“So you…stranded yourself on the beach again?” Riku quirked an eyebrow.

“Yeah, well, y’know…” Sora pushed himself half up to gain a bit of height, looking at Riku with a hopeful expression. “Did you find it?” 

“Yeah.” Riku nodded, extending his hand and opening his palm. 

Sora _ beamed, _ snatching it away with one hand. “Thank you so much, Riku!” 

“It’s no problem.” Riku smiled.

Sora’s giddiness quickly subsided as he realized he needed both hands to clasp the chain around his neck. “Riku…can I have you take me back to the water again..?”

“Yeah, of course.” Riku laughed lightly, scooping Sora up into his arms. Not having to prop himself up any more, Sora happily put his necklace back on.

“Thanks again, Riku!” Sora chirped. “I had no idea humans were this helpful!”

“I mean…not all humans are.” Riku admitted. “I just-”  _ Thought you had pretty eyes? Thought you were cute? _ “…Wanted to help you out, I guess.”

“Well, you must be a really nice human, then.” Sora decided, smiling.

_ Not really…  _ Riku pushed the negative thought away and smiled back. “Thanks, Sora. You’re a really nice merman.”

Sora was returned to the sea, the two exchanging more thank yous and goodbyes.

Riku sat awake late that night, wondering if there was any way he’d ever see Sora again.

It was embarrassing to admit, but he’d fallen at first sight. There was just something about him, the bubbliness and enthusiasm he acted with.

Riku groaned, slowly lowering his head onto his desk with a small thunk. “Leave it to me to fall for a  _ mythical creature, _ of all things… Kairi was right, I’m hopeless.”

She’d been kidding, of course, but Riku couldn’t help but find the truth in it. He was almost tempted to message her, to tell her what happened, but knew it was a terrible idea.  _ How could  _ **_any_ ** _ rational person believe a situation like this? _ Riku was half-expecting to wake up and find out that the whole day — the whole week, maybe — had been a dream. But, the storm had been awful, and Sora’s weight in his arms had felt too real to just be a dream.

He popped a sleep supplement into his mouth and started slowly getting ready for bed, tired of thinking in circles.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (singsong) second verse, same as the first! but not quite

It was roughly a day and a half before Riku saw Sora again.

Riku was up with the sunrise, enjoying some fresh air before the daytime heat turned it stifling. Coffee in one hand, his phone in the other, leaning against the deck railing. Relaxing.

He held his phone high, trying to get a good shot of the ocean and sunrise to post online. Something that hopefully said,  _ ‘hey, I’m alive, okay, and maybe even enjoying myself out here.’  _

As Riku snapped the photo, he realized there was a familiar figure lying on the beach. He ditched his phone and coffee on the railing, hurrying toward the shoreline.

_ Did he loose his necklace again? Does this happen often..?  _

**_Do the locals know him?_ **

Confused, Riku knelt down next to Sora to get a look.

“Oh…Riku!” Sora propped himself up with his arms and smiled. “I was hoping you’d find me!” 

“Oh? Do you need me to take you back to the water again..?” 

“No, actually…” Sora trailed off, glancing over his shoulder. “Well…Kinda?” His smile turned sheepish.

“I’m not sure what you mean, Sora.”

“It’s gonna sound weird, okay? I need you to set me down into the water, but don’t let go. And then bring me back. Like a quick dunk.”

“Um…Okay?” Riku looked between Sora and the sea in confusion. “Sure, I’ll do that.” Riku lifted Sora, and Sora immediately looped his arms around Riku’s neck. Riku looked away, blushing slightly out of nervousness.

It was… Unexpected.

“Put me all the way underwater, okay? I’ll stick my head up when I’m ready to get back out.”

“Okay.” Riku nodded. He headed to the water and waded out, kneeling again to fully submerge Sora.

Sora’s arms lightly pulled against Riku’s neck as he looked around underwater. 

There was a moment of stillness where Riku had to remind himself that Sora wasn’t going to drown.

Sora’s arms tensed, and he quickly surfaced, eyes wide. “Okay, time to go! Now!”

“O-okay” Riku quickly stood, nearly losing his hold on Sora when he suddenly began thrashing his tail into the water; stirring up bubbles and sand. A hand reached out for Sora’s tail. Riku jerked backwards in shock; Sora smacked the hand with his fins, causing a loud  _ THWAK. _ Riku couldn’t help but flinch at the sound, but he turned and hurried as well as he could towards the shore. His legs tired from running through water, but he didn’t slow until he made it to dry sand — far enough that any sea creature would likely be stranded.

Finally, he turned around to look; catching only a glimpse of white hair and a long tail turning away and slipping beneath the sea.

“Sora… What just happened?”

“It’s kind of a long story.” Sora shook his head.

“I mean… Seems like you’ve got time, I’m sure that merperson hasn’t gone far yet.” Riku noted. 

Sora leaned his head against Riku’s shoulder with a groan. “I don’t even know what to do next…”

“What do you mean?” Riku frowned, confused and concerned.

“He either won’t leave the area, or he’ll come back later…” Sora explained. “It’s getting hot out, I can’t be out of the water for super long. I’ll dry up.”

“What? But, then why were you out of the water?” Riku’s brow furrowed. “If it’s dangerous, why would you risk it?”

“I was hoping I’d get lucky and you’d find me. And I did!” 

“Still, Sora, I don’t get why you took such a big risk.” Riku sighed. “I’m so lost.”

“Sorry, Riku… I  _ really _ gotta figure out what to do, first.” 

“Is staying away from that merman so important?”

“Yes.” Sora nodded vigorously. 

“Okay…” Riku started walking again, heading towards his yard. “How long can you stay out of water?”

“Umm… I’m not sure? I don’t usually make a habit of trying risky things like that.” Sora paused, thinking. “Not very long, when it’s hot. I felt dry faster the other afternoon than I did either morning.”

“Would air conditioning help you last longer, then?”

Sora looked at Riku blankly. 

“It’s something humans have in their buildings, to keep them cool inside.”

“Oh! Yeah, that would probably help!” Sora nodded.

“Okay… I’ll bring you inside, then.” Riku continued through his yard to the back doors. He shifted his hold on Sora, freeing one hand enough to turn the knob. 

He tried to ignore the way Sora was now pressed closer to him.

“Wow, so this is a human home..?” Sora’s eyes darted around, confused and delighted. “Why is there so much open space? You can’t go up there, right?”

“Up there..?” Riku looked towards the second-floor railing. “Yeah we can, that’s actually where we’re going.”

“ _ What? _ ” Sora looked at Riku in shock. “You’re lying. Humans can’t float in the air.”

Riku stifled a laugh. “You’ve lost me. What are you talking about?”

“ _ This room! _ ” Sora huffed, irritated at being misunderstood. “Why is the ceiling so high up in this room?”

“Oh.” Riku glanced up at the vaulted, second-story ceiling. “To make the room bigger and look nicer.” He stepped carefully, a futile effort to prevent sea water from dripping all over the carpet.

“Huh! It does look nice, I guess. Everything looks so different than merfolk homes…”

“Yeah? I bet.” Riku smiled. “I’m kinda curious what they look like, now.” He headed up the stairs, silently asking the universe if he was making a stupid decision by letting a merman into his parents’ home.

“Mostly they’re carved-out sea caves. But some merfolk scavenge shipwrecks and stuff, and use what they find for building materials.”

“Huh, like recycling. That’s pretty cool, actually.”

“Yeah!” Sora grinned. “Those ones are my favorites, usually. My mom and I-” His voice faltered. “Ah, nevermind, actually.” Sora smiled apologetically.

“Oh, that’s okay.” Riku blinked slowly, confused at the sudden shift. 

He cautiously opened a door, feeling like he was intruding.

“Woah, why’s it dark in here?” Sora spoke up, already sounding more like Riku was used to.

“Because the lights are off.” Riku bumped the lightswitch with his elbow, illuminating the space.

“Ooh!” Sora looked around curiously. “What kind of room is this?”

“A bedroom.” Riku said simply, eyeing the room for any sign of inhabitants. His parents were hours away, but he couldn’t help checking.

“Are they all like this?” Sora asked as Riku turned towards the ensuite bathroom’s door. 

“Um… Sort of. They’re all different sizes. This one has its own bathroom, most don’t.”

“Huh…” Sora continued his gawking as Riku entered the bathroom, then started carefully lowering Sora into the tub. He’d gone against what was potentially his better judgment by taking Sora into his parents’ room; but with it having the biggest bathtub in the house, it seemed like the best choice.

“I’m gonna let you down into this, okay?” 

“Okay.” Sora nodded, releasing his hold around Riku’s neck. “What is it?”

“Bathtub.” Riku pointed towards the faucet. “Water comes out of that, so you won’t dry up.”

“Ooh.” Sora immediately grabbed for it. Riku watched as he quickly figured the knobs out and positioned himself under the stream of water. He was quiet for a moment, scrunching his face slightly in thought. “Riku, this won’t really work.”

“Why not?”

“It’s not ocean water.” Sora turned the knobs, stopping the flow. “I’ll get sick.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize it had to be. That makes sense, though.” Riku nodded, half to himself. “ _ I can’t believe H2O lied to me. _ ” He muttered, all to himself.

“What?” Sora tilted his head.

“Nothing! It’s nothing.” Riku’s cheeks warmed in embarrassment. “I’ll have to figure something else out, then…”

“Could you bring ocean water inside?”

Riku grimaced. He  _ could… _ But it sounded like a terrible idea. It’d be his luck to spill water and ruin the expensive, new flooring. He brought his hand to his chin, considering options.

* * *

Sora watched curiously as Riku thought. He looked so serious at the moment, in contrast to his kind smiles from before. 

_ Not that he looks mean now. _ Sora reasoned with himself.  _ He looks… Cool. _

“I think I’ve got it.” Riku announced confidently. “I gotta grab my phone and check something, though. I left it outside.”

“Oh, okay.” 

“I’ll be right back.” Riku left quickly.

Sora looked around the bathroom, his situation sinking in a bit more. He was sure he could trust this human, but… Being alone in another strange place didn’t feel good at all. 

Really, his only consolation was that, this time, the room had some color to it. The natural tones were a lot nicer to look at than steel and stone.

Sora shivered, feeling a chill from inside himself.  _ Let’s not think about that any more! _ His stomach growled and he slouched, sliding down the bathtub’s wall a bit. 

“I hope Riku comes back fast.” Sora mumbled, fidgeting with his necklace.

Luckily, he did.

Riku reentered the bathroom, holding a small rectangle and looking at it intently.

“What’s that?”

“Hm?” Riku looked down towards Sora. “It’s my phone. I’m looking up how to make saltwater.”

“Let me see!” Sora perked up, maneuvering himself to the side of the bathtub closest to Riku. He propped his arms up on the edge, looking up expectantly.

“Okay, sure.” Riku laughed lightly, then sat on the floor near Sora, angling his phone so that Sora could read over his shoulder.

Sora examined the screen, quickly growing bored with the endless text.

“So you’ll be able to make seawater?”

“Yeah, I should be able to.” Riku nodded. “I just have to see if there’s a shop nearby that sells everything.”

“Oh, okay.” Sora idly watched as Riku tapped his phone to search for the shop. His stomach growled again.

Riku turned towards him, caught off guard by the sudden sound. “Want something to eat?”

A bit embarrassed, Sora slouched down; resting his chin on his arms. “Yes, please…”

“What do merfolk eat?”

“Fish.” Sora replied vaguely, with a shrug.

“I’m not sure if we have any…” Riku looked off to the side, thinking. “Can you eat human foods?”

“No idea, maybe? I’ll try it. I’m really hungry…”

“Alright, I’ll find you something real quick.” Riku got up and left once again. 

Sora turned the water on again for a little bit, letting it flow over him and into the drain. He couldn’t soak in it, but at least it’d be enough to prevent him from drying out for a little while. 

Riku came back with a tray of food, some type of meat and a bunch of fruits.

“What’s that?” Sora pointed at the meat. The scent wafted towards him, and his mouth started to water. “And those?”

“The meat’s chicken, and those are grapes. It’s kind of a weird combination, but I don’t have much food here right now.” Riku smiled apologetically. 

“That’s okay! Thanks, Riku.” Sora dug in, devouring the chicken first. Out of the corner of his eye, Sora saw Riku stealing a couple grapes. “Hey!”

“I’m just taking a few.” Riku promised with a small laugh.

“Fine.” Sora pouted. He decided that human food tasted great. He was pretty sure the decision wasn’t just because he’d been so hungry. Mostly sure, even.

Riku grabbed a couple more grapes and then stood, looking toward Sora. “I’m gonna go get the saltwater-making supplies, okay? I’ll go as quick as I can, but it’ll probably be a while.”

“Okay.” Sora nodded. He wasn’t looking forward to being alone for ‘a while’, but seawater was a necessity. 

“See you.” Riku turned and left. The house became quiet, and Sora wished that he’d asked for something to pass the time during Riku’s absence. He slid down into the bottom of the tub and curled up with a yawn.

It was safe, here; so maybe he could finally get some rest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CLEO NOOO


End file.
